Dada 5000 of Dawg Fight and Bellator fame is back. This time, promoting a caged, bare-knuckle boxing event in Wyoming on April 5.
Dada 5000, also known as Dhafir Harris, is a former backyard fighter, and Bellator star most notable for nearly dying after his fight with Kimbo Slice at Bellator 149. After suffering a heart attack in the cage and being in cardiac arrest, Dada survived and subsequently went into the shadows for a bit. However, back from the dead, Dada is back in front of the MMA world. This time, in a promoter’s role.
Bare Knuckle Boxing has been a sport on the rise since the legalization of it in Wyoming among other states since last summer. Dada is capitalizing on this recent trend by bringing BYB Brawl 1: “Brawl For It All” to Cheyenne Ice & Event Center in Cheyenne, Wyoming, on April 5. The nine-fight card will be on PPV, on DirectTV, Dish, In Demand, and also on FITE TV for the low price of $25.
BYB Brawl 1 will be headlined by a rematch between “Chocolate” Alfonso Frierson and Mike Trujillo, who both appeared in the “Dawg Fight” documentary. Also, former Bellator and Contender Series competitor Jamelle Jones will square off against MMA veteran Matt Kovacs in another bout. All fights will be contested in the “Trigon Triangle” cage, a 187 square foot, triangle-shaped structure that includes 7-foot high fences.
According to a press release with Sherdog, Dada is “fully recovered” from the injuries he suffered against Slice in their 2016 bout. After a third-round TKO loss to Slice at the Toyota Center in Houston in which both fighters badly gassed, Dada was transported to a hospital, where he suffered from severe dehydration, fatigue, and renal failure. Dada alleged after the bout that he suffered two heart attacks as well, supposedly dying in the cage in the process.
However, Slice would test positive for performance-enhancing drugs after the fight and the fight would be overturned to a no-contest. This means that Dada 5000 died in the cage, and yet still didn’t lose. The press release also says that Harris is “far from being a retired fighter” and hints that he could return to compete under the BYB Promotion.
